Co-op awaits approval of Nisa members for its £140m takeover November 12, 2017 Members are gearing up to vote on the proposed buyout of convenience chain Nisa by the Co-operative. Shopkeeper members will vote tomorrow at about 11am in an emergency general meeting. Co-op needs 75 per cent of votes cast to approve for its bid of almost £140m. It is expected that the vote will have a [...]
Former Tesco commercial director Kevin Grace sues for unfair dismissal after 2014 accounting scandal November 12, 2017 Tesco is facing further fallout from its 2014 accounting scandal as a former director claims he was wrongly dismissed. Kevin Grace, the former commercial director, was removed from his job after it emerged that Tesco had overstated profit expectations. Grace maintains he was not responsible for the problem and last year the Serious Fraud Office [...]
Tesco fraud trial: Former chairman Sir Richard Broadbent gives evidence November 9, 2017 Former Tesco chairman Sir Richard Broadbent told a court yesterday of the pressure facing Tesco in 2014 which caused him to replace the company’s chief executive. As early as 2013, Broadbent told the jury, “you could tell results were beginning to show a downward trend”. He said he had taken the decision to find a [...]
Marks and Spencer turnaround: Retail veteran Steve Rowe must make M&S tills jingle all the way during Christmas period November 9, 2017 Marks and Spencer started this week on a cheery note with the launch of its Christmas advert – but the festive feel didn’t last long for the high-street stalwart. The new advert sent Twitter into a tizzy on Tuesday with some viewers convinced that one of the characters was mouthing a swear word in a [...]
Nisa shopkeepers try to block Co-op takeover ahead of vote November 5, 2017 A set of Nisa shopkeepers are hoping to block a takeover of the business by the Co-operative Group. The Co-op made an offer to buy convenience store Nisa for £137.5m last month, with the board unanimously voting in favour of the deal. The shopkeepers will vote on the merger on 13 November. More than half [...]
Bakking up: Tesco and Waitrose supplier Bakkavor sacks off London float November 3, 2017 Food supplier Bakkavor has backed out of its plan to float on the London Stock Exchange, saying current market conditions are too volatile. The IPO was set to take place this month and would have valued the company, which creates microwave meals and other products for the UK’s biggest supermarkets, at up to £2bn. Read [...]
Dave Lewis tells court of tension and disagreement at Tesco at time of his appointment November 2, 2017 Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis gave evidence in the trial against his former colleagues today, as three former executives faced charges of fraud and false accounting. Lewis shone a light on the tensions already present at the supermarket when he was appointed in 2014 in proceedings at Southwark Crown Court today. The former Unilever executive [...]
Powa-founder Dan Wagner’s previous company ATTRAQT shares fall 25% after CFO finds ‘inaccuracies’ October 27, 2017 Shares in AIM-listed software company ATTRAQT lost a quarter of their value on Friday after its new CFO discovered “inaccuracies” on its books. ATTRAQT said that Eric Dodd, who became CFO at the start of September, found “inaccuracies in forecasting the timing of certain contracts and client “go-live” dates” following a review commissioned by the [...]
Suits you: Supermarket fashion is turning heads in the UK October 24, 2017 Cheap? Check. Convenience? Check. Choice? Check. Sainsbury’s launched a rival to Savile Row in outlets this week, giving shoppers a chance to buy suits with their weekly shop. The move is a classic example of how wafer-thin margins and the dog fight for market share is forcing supermarkets to turn towards different revenue streams – [...]
BT pension deficit could reduce by £4.4bn as expectations of an interest rate hike mount October 23, 2017 BT’s troublesome pension black hole is set to reduce by billions of pounds as expectations of an interest rate rise mount, analysts said today. Previously, consensus opinion has been that BT’s retirement deficit would swell from £8.7bn to around £11bn. But in a report by RBC Capital Markets, analysts said BT’s shortfall could halve to [...]